Memories
by WindlessHarmony
Summary: By now he should've obtained his dream, he should have disappeared in the water just like he wanted. To swim forever. That's all he had been reaching for. But that dream was gone; you couldn't swim without legs. MakoHaru, Reigisa, slight Ringisa.
1. Haruka

The prompt was 'Haruka goes into a coma for ten years.' Well, my brain wouldn't let the idea be and this small drabble appeared. I made an add-on for Nagisa as well, which is the next chapter. ;3;

* * *

The view was just as he remembered it, seagulls high overhead, waves lapping at the shore. Sunlight turned the horizon red and orange, dying the sea a dark pink. Children ran up and down the sandy banks of the ocean, a dog jumping through the waves washing pebbles onto the shore. A sailboat drifted far off in the corner. Everything appeared just how it had been left, serene and gentle. A normal day. Except today was far from normal.

This was the first time in ten years that Nanase Haruka had stared at this scene.

He leaned back in the wheelchair, watching the thing he had loved all those years ago. The sea was calling him, but Haruka knew he couldn't go near it again. No, Makoto wouldn't allow him to. It was there that he had almost drowned, and it was there that little Nagisa saved his life during a swirling storm. Haruka had survived, falling into a coma that had lasted for ten years. At least, this is what Makoto told him, standing there beside him. His best friend refused to let go of his hand, as if he was afraid that Haruka would drift away from him again.

The former swimmer was twenty-seven now, far past the age of 'ordinary.' By now he should've obtained his dream, he should have disappeared in the water just like he wanted. To swim forever. That's all he had been reaching for.  
He took a small breath, fingers clenching against the arm of the wheelchair.

"What happened to Nagisa?" The little blond hadn't been there when he had awoken.

Haruka glanced up, seeing an almost pained smile appear on Makoto's lips. "He went to South America with Rei about five years ago. Those two got together about a year after you went into a coma and ran off for a bit. You had made some progress by then, and you were so close to waking up, but something pulled you back under again." The black-haired swimmer noticed the glitter of tears running from those gentle green eyes. "A few days after that, Nagisa lost consciousness and died from malaria. He contracted it in South America."

"Rei was killed in an accident two days later. We think his grief got the better of him and he lost control of his car. Everyone went to their funeral. We buried both of them together, just like they wanted. Even Rin showed up. We hadn't seen him in so long ..." Makoto wiped away the tears, clearly not wanting Haruka to see them. "He came to visit you a few times, but he had a breakdown and got escorted out. Rin didn't come back after that. It's been nearly four years since I've last seen him."

Haruka looked back at the ocean, watching the waves lap at the shore once more. He thought back to Nagisa pulling them all together again. He thought of when they cleaned the pool together, when he tried to swim in a fish aquarium. The swimmer thought of Rei and how the teenager nearly drowned. His mind brought up the images of attempting to teach him how to swim; the butterflies, the frustration, the stress. Haruka thought of Kou and her obsession with how they looked. He went even further back and thought of when the four of them had swam together, Rin, Makoto, Nagisa, and himself. Had it really already been ten years since Haruka had taken that swim in the ocean?

"Kou went off to America to become a doctor. She wanted to try and help you in any way that she could. Now that you're awake, she's on her way back here." Haruka let out a soft sigh at the voice, looking back to Makoto. "Were they happy? Were Nagisa and Rei truly happy?" His best friend gave a small nod. "Yeah. They were really happy together." Makoto squeezed his hand a bit tighter. "Then that's enough. Let them rest together."

Haruka blinked in surprise as Makoto hugged him. "I'm glad you're back. I missed you."

Moments passed, before Haruka wrapped his arms around the other and held him close. It was all the movement he could do now; the swimmer had lost his ability to walk. He had been tossed against rocks during that terrible storm. His spine had been broken, rendering his legs useless.

"Hey Haruka, why don't we go for one last swim?"

"I'd like that," he whispered, and for the first time in ten years, Haruka smiled.


	2. Nagisa

This is where it gets really depressing. ;w; Nagisa and Rei's side of the story.

* * *

Nagisa had watched Haruka be tossed around by the ocean waves for nearly five minutes. He'd stood their wide-eyed and shaking, torn between jumping in to save his friend and going to run for help. This was exactly what he had warned against, the unforgiving tides of the sea. But Haruka hadn't listened and jumped in on his own, Nagisa calling out for the other swimmer to stop.

A loud clap of thunder startled him from his moments of terror, making him stumble forwards. The stumbling turned into running, and Nagisa's feet churned up sand into the air as he ran. Nagisa caught one glimpse of Haruka before he dived in, freezing water rushing over his head. He swirled around in darkness for a few moments before his head bobbed above the surface, the blond taking a quick breath. His arms flailed around in the water uselessly, fear rising through him. Nagisa knew that he had to calm down; he couldn't save Haruka with his limbs frozen. it took all his willpower to calm down, a wave of water crashing down on him.

He broke the surface with a gasp, glancing around. Reddish eyes widened in horror as he watched Haruka be thrown against a large rock formation. "Haruka!" His scream was lost in the howling wind and terrible waves. Nagisa himself was being worn down, but he'd never forgive himself if he allowed Haruka to die in the thing he loved most. Legs kicking hard, the blond attempted to swim towards his senpai's limp body. He was already fearing the worst, but Nagisa couldn't think about that now; that would only weigh him down.

After what felt like years, but it had been a mere three or four minutes, he managed to reach Haruka's body. Nagisa hefted the other swimmer along, trying to take in as much air as he could. With the other male's weight and his own, he was having troubles, growing weak and water-logged. He blinked tears and salt from his eyes, seeing two frantic-looking forms running down the shore. Nagisa kept swimming, kicking weak legs against the current. Hands latched onto his arms, yanking him along through the churning waves. His body finally gave out, warmth creeping into him and lulling him to sleep.

* * *

He awoke in a hospital bed with a start. Nagisa glanced around, white all around him. The air smelled of bleach and urine. The swimmer let out a soft sigh, leaning back against the bed. Nimble fingers clenching slightly in the sheets, the blond wincing a bit as his IV moved just the slightest bit. The sound of a heart monitor came from his right, too slow for the doctors' liking, even with the dream he had just had. Nagisa stared up at the ceiling, his entire body feeling hot despite how cold it was in his room. It was just the fever that refused to go away.

It had all been a dream; those events had taken place nearly five years ago. The now twenty-one year-old took a deep breath, calming himself down a bit. This was all so familiar to him; maybe that was why he had had the dream once more. He'd been in this same spot five years ago, sick with hypothermia and lung damage. But at least he was still awake; somewhere in this hospital, Haruka was lying in a room just like his own. His senpai had fallen into a coma after the younger swimmer rescued him from drowning in the raging waters of the sea. Nagisa still blamed himself for it; he hadn't gotten to Haruka in time. Makoto told him to let it go, but Nagisa couldn't just let it go. All of what happened was etched deeply into him.

This was the second day since he had been admitted to this hospital. This would also be the final day he rested in that bed; Nagisa knew that. So did Rei, and Makoto, and Kou. Even Rin knew that.

Rin didn't come to visit him, not even once. It hurt, seeing the swimmer walk down the hall to peer into Haruka's, but never even glancing into Nagisa's own. The blond figured it was due to the fling they had before him and Rei got together. Rin had been the one at fault, taking Nagisa in and making him think he cared about him, before Rin had dumped the boy on the street one night. Rei helped Nagisa get back on his feet and eventually he forgot about his broken heart, but he never forgot about Rin. Even now, he was wishing that Rin would at least stop in for a visit, just so he could say sorry and goodbye to the shark.

No matter how hard he hoped, Rin never did.

He closed his eyes and thought about Rei, the one he had been with for nearly four years now. The two of them had gotten together a year after Haruka went into a coma and Rin had stolen Nagisa's heart. Rei had taken him to South America so they could branch out in the world. Unfortunately, they lost their passports and were forced to stay there for about three years. Makoto had called them one night, telling them that Haruka could awaken at any moment. The two of them had done everything they could to gather up enough money to get new passports. After a month, they finally had enough, and made their way back to Japan.

He'd barely visited the still sleeping Haruka for an hour before he had passed out.

Nagisa had been admitted to the same hospital as Haruka. The doctor's determined his illness; malaria. There was no way for him to be saved from the disease; it was already too far into his system for it to be treated. So the blond was forced to suffer, waiting for the moment when he would die. Rei sat with him all night long on his first night, but it appeared that the man wasn't here now. Hopefully he went to get something to eat.

His head fell to the side, eyes spotting a beautiful golden ring sitting on the side table. It was the one that Rei had given to him three weeks prior. The blond swallowed down the pain that suddenly rose in him; they were supposed to get married in two months, but that dream had been stolen from them. Nagisa forced himself to look away from the ring, closing his eyes as warm tears slipped from his eyes. He allowed himself to cry, to be unhappy for a few moments.

Fingers wiped away the tears moment's later, and Nagisa blinked the haze away to see Rei standing beside him. The man looked fuzzy, the edges of his vision a bit dark. His expression was pained, and the blond lifted a weak arm to press his palm against Rei's cheek. He offered a smile, and the other man leaned down to kiss his forehead. It was time; the sedatives were kicking in. "I love you … Rei-chan …" Lips pressed against his forehead once more, Rei running his fingers through Nagisa's hair.

"I love you too, Nagisa. We'll get married in heaven, okay?" His voice was a pained whisper, Rei fighting back the burn in his throat.

"That sounds nice … The clouds are soft and … Everything will be so pretty …" Nagisa's grip grew lax, before his hand slipped back onto the bed. His fingers curled into the sheets, Rei shaking as he stared down at the other male's face. He looked so calm ...

Rei held onto the blond until his heart gave out, a single long sigh leaving Nagisa's lips as he surrendered to the darkness. He reached over and grabbed Nagisa's wedding ring, slipping it onto his finger. "You'll need this," he murmured quietly, kissing Nagisa's forehead.

Outside the window, it started to rain.


End file.
